Episode 36 - The Human Connection: The Vital Role of Emotional Intelligence in Building Great Teams | Alan Samuel Cohen

Do you wonder what it takes to build greater followership as a leader? Do you struggle with the people connection of leadership especially with all the demands to get things done? Are you committed to being a leader that people want to follow? Our special guest Alan Samuel Cohen covers these questions and many others as we explore the keys to leading and connecting with others in order to achieve your objectives. Alan started his career in marketing and public relations, including an amazing experience with Scholastic Publishing and lead the launch of the Harry Potter series. He then pivoted to human resources and is now a coach, speaker and trainer in the areas of leadership and emotional intelligence. Alan helps leaders identify and most past their blind spots, especially male leaders in the areas of emotional intelligence and human connection. The Impact Leadership Podcast is brought to you by Cardivera, the leadership development eco-system that helps your grow your people, grow your business and grow your life.

Show Notes

In this episode you’ll learn…

The ways that lower emotional intelligence is often a leader’s most critical blind spot
The vital role that emotional intelligence and people / soft skills play in leadership effectiveness
The importance of listening as a leader
That research proves that soft skills are the most important leadership skill (80-85% of leadership success comes from interpersonal and people skills
The many ways that people skills overwhelm business acumen when it comes to leadership success
The critical role of outsider feedback to help leaders understand their blind spots and the impacts of those blind spots
Practical tools for enhancing the feedback you receive as a leader
The importance of trust and vulnerability for leaders, teams and organizations
The role that empathy plays in receiving feedback and assuring that the people providing feedback feel heard
That trust is at the heart of all the issues in your business and the importance that leaders are intentional to work on trust building in their teams and organizations
The ways that are eye’s go where we’re looking … in other words, you see what you’re looking for as a leader
The leadership imperative of overcoming the crisis (lack of) empathy in our culture
Paying attention to the energy from which you lead, especially in the small moments
That leaders make a position to get feedback from and listen to the people that are closest to the issues, problems and opportunities
The power of a shared purpose within a team and organization
That everything in leadership is about connection and relationships